1 - American jazz double … Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist named Ray Brown.
1 - American jazz double bassist
2 - Australian singer/guitarist
1. Raymond Matthews Brown (October 13, 1926–July 2, 2002) was an American jazz double bassist.
Ray Brown was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and had piano lessons from the age of eight. After noticing how many pianists attended his high school, he thought of taking up the trombone, but was unable to afford one. With a vacancy in the high school jazz orchestra, he took up the double bass.
A major early influence on Brown's bass playing was the bassist in the Duke Ellington band, Jimmy Blanton. As a young man Ray Brown became steadily more well known in the Pittsburgh jazz scene, with his first experiences playing in bands with the Jimmy Hinsley Sextet and the Snookum Russel band. After graduating from high school, hearing stories about the burgeoning jazz scene on 52nd Street, in New York City, he bought a one way ticket to New York.
Arriving in New York at the age of twenty, he met up with Hank Jones, with whom he had previously worked, and was introduced to Dizzy Gillespie, who was looking for a bass player. Gillespie hired Brown on the spot and he soon played with such established musicians as Art Tatum and Charlie Parker.
From 1946 to 1951 he played in Gillespie's band. Brown, along with the vibraphonist Milt Jackson, drummer Kenny Clarke, and the pianist John Lewis formed the rhythm section of the Gillespie band, and their work together eventually led to the creation of the Modern Jazz Quartet.
Around this time Brown was also appearing in Jazz at the Philharmonic concerts, organised by Norman Granz. It was at these concerts that he met the jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, whom he married in 1947. Together they adopted a child born to Fitzgerald's half-sister Francis, whom they christened Ray Brown, Jr. Fitzgerald and Brown divorced in 1952.
It was at a Jazz at the Philharmonic concert in 1949 that Brown first worked with the jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, in whose trio Brown would play from 1951 to 1966. After leaving the Trio he became a manager and promoter as well as a performer.
In 1966, he settled in Los Angeles where he was in high demand working for various television show orchestras. He also accompanied some of the leading artists of the day, including Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughan, and Nancy Wilson. He also managed his former musical partners, the Modern Jazz Quartet, as well as a young Quincy Jones, produced some shows for the Hollywood Bowl, wrote jazz double bass instruction books, and developed a jazz cello.
It was whilst in Los Angeles that he composed music for films and television shows. He was awarded his first Grammy for his composition, "Gravy Waltz", a tune which would later be used as the theme song for The Steve Allen Show.
In the 1980s and 1990s he led his own trios and continued to refine his bass playing style. In his later years he recorded and toured extensively with pianist Gene Harris. In the early 1980s, he discovered Diana Krall in a restaurant in Nanaimo, British Columbia.
He continued to perform until his death; he died while taking a nap before a show in Indianapolis.
2. Ray Brown & The Whispers were a highly successful Australian rock band from 1964-67. Led by singer Ray Brown, they ranked alongside The Easybeats, Billy Thorpe & The Aztecs and Normie Rowe as one of the most popular acts of the period. After a few name and personnel changes which led to short lived incarnations, Ray sought to further/widen his career and in late '67 Ray headed overseas and spent two years working in the U.S.A. which included the recording of a solo album Just Ray Brown for Capitol, produced by American composer arranger producer David Axelrod. Despite the name producer and large budget, it flopped, largely due to poor choices of material by the company. According to a contemporary interview from Go-Set, Ray declared that "Capitol spent $30,000 on it, put in a 30 piece orchestra and then wouldn't let me pick my own material."
3. Ray Brown is from Tallahassee, FL and has been writing songs and performing since 2010. His debut album, CANYON, was released in August, 2012. The East Village arts quarterly, BOOG CITY describes his songs as "funny and tragic at the same time" and The New Yorker dubbed him "a solid songwriter".
https://raybrown.bandcamp.com
Night And Day
Ray Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When the jungle shadows fall
Like the tick tick tock of the stately clock
As it stands against the wall
Like the drip drip drip of the raindrops
When the summer shower is through
So a voice within me keeps repeating you, you, you
Only you beneath the moon or under the sun
Whether near to me, or far
It's no matter darling where you are
I think of you
Day and night, night and day, why is it so
That this longing for you follows wherever I go
In the roaring traffic's boom
In the silence of my lonely room
I think of you
Day and night, night and day
Under the hide of me
There's an oh such a hungry yearning burning inside of me
And this torment won't be through
Until you let me spend my life making love to you
Day and night, night and day
, Ray Brown's Night And Day is a classic love song that describes a longing and yearning for someone special. The lyrics use a range of powerful metaphors to convey the depth of feelings and emotions associated with love. The opening verses use the beat of a drum to represent the singer's heart beat, which intensifies whenever they think of 'you'. The repetitive nature of the beat and the sound of raindrops reinforce the idea that the singer's thoughts of 'you' are never-ending.
The lyrics 'Night and day, you are the one, Only you beneath the moon or under the sun, Whether near to me, or far, It's no matter darling where you are' paint a vivid image of someone who is always on the singer's mind - whether they are near or far. The idea of 'you' being the one is also emphasized, making it clear that no one else can fill the void that 'you' have left in the singer's life. The lyrics also suggest that the desire to be with 'you' is all-consuming, and nothing can provide relief from this longing.
The final verse, 'Under the hide of me, There's an oh such a hungry yearning burning inside of me, And this torment won't be through Until you let me spend my life making love to you', further drives home the idea that the singer's feelings have become all-consuming. They long for intimacy with 'you', and this desire is so intense that it has become a source of torment. The lyrics, therefore, provide a powerful description of the deep emotions felt by those who are truly in love.
Line by Line Meaning
Like the beat beat beat of the tom-tom
When the jungle shadows fall
Similar to the steady beat of the tom-tom in the jungle amidst the falling shadows, there exists a constant sense of yearning within me for you.
Like the tick tick tock of the stately clock
As it stands against the wall
Just like the ticking of the grand old clock against the wall, my fondness towards you endures, unchanging and consistent.
Like the drip drip drip of the raindrops
When the summer shower is through
Just like the persistent dripping of the raindrops after a summer shower, your thoughts keep echoing within me even after we've separated paths.
So a voice within me keeps repeating you, you, you
There is this overwhelming voice within, constantly chanting and reiterating your name in my head.
Night and day, you are the one
Only you beneath the moon or under the sun
Whether near to me, or far
It's no matter darling where you are
I think of you
You, and only you, hold an unparalleled place in my world, irrespective of the time of the day, moon or sun, or distance. I can't help but think of you constantly.
Day and night, night and day, why is it so
That this longing for you follows wherever I go
In the roaring traffic's boom
In the silence of my lonely room
I think of you
This unbearable longing for you seems to tail me no matter where I go, be it amidst the bustling traffic or in the solitude of my room, my thoughts are always consumed by you.
Day and night, night and day
Under the hide of me
There's an oh such a hungry yearning burning inside of me
And this torment won't be through
Until you let me spend my life making love to you
This insatiable craving for you seems to have grown stronger day by day, so much so that it's become an endless torment. My soul won't find peace until you let me shower your life with love.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Red Brick Music Publishing
Written by: Cole Porter
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind